Greening Australia
The Alcoa Greening Australia partnership began in 1982, the International Year of the Tree and the first year of operation for Greening Australia.
Alcoa and Greening Australia have worked together to build community capacity and knowledge about environmental issues, backed by on-ground environmental restoration projects, which have generated a range of long-term, positive community outcomes.
In December 2003 Alcoa was the National Winner of a Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Community Business Partnerships for its 21-year-long partnership with Greening Australia.
RIVER RECOVERY
In 2005 a new alliance based on Greening Australia’s River Recovery program was launched. Australia’s rivers are a precious natural asset and critical to the future of our country’s health and success. But our rivers are in crisis and nearly 22 000 kilometres of Australia’s rivers are in urgent need of repair.
River Recovery brings together business leaders, scientists, community-based organisations and government agencies to apply the best knowledge and tools in the restoration, protection and management of Australia’s river systems. River Recovery is an environmental program targeted to the national objectives of the National Heritage Trust.
Alcoa is the national foundation alliance partner of this landmark program. Key to this alliance is, Alcoa Mining Manager Bill Knight, a senior Alcoa representative, chairing the national Business and Science Leaders River Recovery Roundtable.
GREENHOUSE FOOTPRINT – MAKE AN IMPACT
Global climate change represents a profound long-term challenge for government, business and society at large. International attention has focussed on action by governments and companies. Alcoa has taken a leadership position on the issue emphasising the contribution that aluminium can make to being part of the climate solution.
A greenhouse footprint package has been developed by Greening Australia and the Australian Greenhouse Office that comprises of a comprehensive take home information and education kit. This kit allows Alcoa employees across Australia, their families and members of their local communities to calculate their greenhouse gas ‘footprint’ through such metrics as their chosen use of transport, number of trees on their home property, annual electricity and gas consumption and home heating etc.
Employees and community members can also reduce their footprint by contributing to carbon sinks by purchasing trees through Greening Australia to be planted across Australia.
OTHER PROJECTS
Over 24 years, this successful partnership has contributed in practical ways to repair the Australian landscape:
- Planting of over 12 million trees in Victoria through the Alcoa Revegetation Assistance Scheme. This scheme gives farmers and Landcare groups access to specialist machinery and equipment. More than 700 Alcoa Landcare sites have been established and thousands of hectares of degraded land treated.
- Grow Us A Home was introduced in 1992 in recognition of the changing urban landscape in the Perth metropolitan and Peel regions. The decade long program is estimated to have raised the level of environmental awareness of over 40,000 people through the involvement of teachers, parents and students.
- The Alcoa Portland Seedbank collects and houses seeds from indigenous plants for use in revegetation projects, providing the right seed for the right sites;
- Build community capacity to develop and implement solutions to local environmental issues through the Living Landscapes Project, farming communities in the central wheatbelt of Western Australia and Southwest Victoria are working with community landcare coordinators, scientists, Greening Australia and Alcoa with the aim of integrating nature conservation with landcare and sustainable agriculture
- Producing a range of practical publications and resources for landholders, rural and urban audiences.
Australian employees part of the global climate change solution
 Media release on the 'Make an Impact' program
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Our rivers are in crisis and nearly 22 000 kilometres of Australia’s rivers are in urgent need of repair. Find out what Alcoa and Greening Australia are doing...
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Make an Impact is a program allowing everyday Australians to calculate their greenhouse gas ‘footprint’. Find out more...
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